Thornton-based Ultimate Electronics is making plans to liquidate all 46 of its stores nationwide, including nine stores in Colorado, according to an email from the company's Chief Executive Officer, and documents filed in a federal bankruptcy court.
Liquidation sales at stores nationwide will start as soon as Wednesday, a liquidator inside the Thornton store told 9News Sunday afternoon.

I'll be sad to see them go :( Their BOGO coupons and free $25 gift cards made my jump to BR a lot easier this Holiday season.

Troy Stiffler

02-07-11, 12:52 AM

Best local place to buy a consumer-grade TV. But I'm indifferent.

Manzana

02-07-11, 09:15 AM

I'm sad to hear it because it was nice to have an electronics store with a large selection within 1 mile of my house, and since they PM'd occasionally I'd buy stuff from UE. However, like BB has done to me, UE also refused PMs sometimes saying it was below cost. I won't be missing or have to worry about any deals on BDs since my location has never carried any.

They'll probably have some killer deals on TVs, camcorders, amplifiers, and maybe appliances, but I don't need anything now having replaced my broken camcorder with a HD one at Christmas. I can't wait for that sinking feeling in my stomach when I see UE selling my $300 HD camcorder for $100 soon. Since there aren't any vacancies in that shopping area, hopefully a good store will replace UE soon (and not another giant pet store).

There's no mention in the article (that I could see) when the clearance sales actually start. As with all clearances, by the time they go from 10% off to more than 50% off, most of the good stuff will be gone.

Blu-ray-collect

02-07-11, 09:27 AM

I doubt there will be any good deals left by the time the percentages off are higher. If this will be like the "Circuit City" liquidation, all prices will be back to list/MSRP, and begin with 10% off, depending on the item. From there, each week the discounts will go up another 10%.

Obi-Wan Jabroni said it best in the "FYE store closing" thread:
"Mark everything back up to full original MSRP, and then mark it 20% off or whatever. That's the problem with getting good stuff in a liquidation sale, most of the really good stuff is gone before the deals get really good because stupid people see the % off and don't know any better."

Groucho

02-07-11, 10:00 AM

They have been out of business here for years. Had no idea they still had stores other places.

Big Worms

02-07-11, 10:54 AM

Going to miss them. :(

mike07

02-07-11, 11:48 AM

Wow, this came as a surprise to me. The local store just opened last year here in Albany, NY. Since then, I always preferred them to Best Buy (prices are better and staff are much, much friendlier!).

Mad Dawg

02-07-11, 12:17 PM

This is really disappointing. They really had a great approach, and there are a lot of great people who are going to lose their jobs.

DirkUSA

02-07-11, 03:40 PM

Wow, this came as a surprise to me. The local store just opened last year here in Albany, NY. Since then, I always preferred them to Best Buy (prices are better and staff are much, much friendlier!).

It's in the old circuit city building, isn't it? I never made it in there yet, I better hurry up, seems like the building is cursed.

JustinCleveland

02-07-11, 03:46 PM

It's in the old circuit city building, isn't it? I never made it in there yet, I better hurry up, seems like the building is cursed.

Funny: They did the same thing here in Milwaukee, WI. Opened last year in the CC building across the street from Best Buy. Great location in that it is right off the Interstate but a pain in the ass to get to.

Jam Master Jay

02-07-11, 04:12 PM

Wow I have to say I'm pretty surprised, the one close to here opened pretty recently. I had been putting off checking it out, guess I have a reason now.

Deftones

02-07-11, 04:13 PM

The one by me was never busy so this isn't surprising.

Lastdaysofrain

02-07-11, 04:19 PM

The two near me (Danvers and Salem, NH) opened less than a year ago (I think the Danvers one had a grand opening right before Christmas) but the only people I ever see in them are teenagers playing on the billards tables. Not terribly surprising.

mndtrp

02-07-11, 10:27 PM

I've bought a few items from UE over the years. They always have knowledgeable staff, eagerness to PM, and were usually willing to work with you on lowering prices without a PM. It's too bad, I dug them.

mike07

02-08-11, 01:24 AM

It's in the old circuit city building, isn't it? I never made it in there yet, I better hurry up, seems like the building is cursed.

Yup, next to Walmart.

I've only been in there a few times. Sure every time I've been in there, there's a few employees playing pool but they were always quick to help if you need.

Lastdaysofrain

02-08-11, 08:39 AM

What I don't understand is how Best Buy still manages to stay in business.

Blu-ray-collect

02-08-11, 11:29 AM

I think the biggest thing that killed UE was the number of stores they opened. There are 3 within 20 minutes of where I live (9 stores in Colorado alone), and, aside from the holidays, they are pretty dead. Too many stores, not enough customers. I plan to stop by one tomorrow (weather permitting), and see what prices the liquidation will start with.

Big Worms

02-08-11, 12:10 PM

I think the biggest thing that killed UE was the number of stores they opened. There are 3 within 20 minutes of where I live (9 stores in Colorado alone), and, aside from the holidays, they are pretty dead. Too many stores, not enough customers. I plan to stop by one tomorrow (weather permitting), and see what prices the liquidation will start with.

Not to mention on how much money they spent on the remodels they did about a year ago.

al_bundy

02-08-11, 12:47 PM

What I don't understand is how Best Buy still manages to stay in business.

the money is made on the accessories

i've had people i know buy TV's without my help and a $1000 or $1200 TV turns into a $2000 or more purchase. the tv table, warranty, UPS, HDMI cable, etc is where all the money is made. and with best buy they also have the geek squad which is huge profit margins and potential sales of software and other products.

no one makes money on the hardware anymore. and with monoprice and amazon the weakest stores will fail

al_bundy

02-08-11, 12:49 PM

I think the biggest thing that killed UE was the number of stores they opened. There are 3 within 20 minutes of where I live (9 stores in Colorado alone), and, aside from the holidays, they are pretty dead. Too many stores, not enough customers. I plan to stop by one tomorrow (weather permitting), and see what prices the liquidation will start with.

i've been to the best buy store in loveland in july and it was like a ghost town. even in december it wasn't too busy compared to the NYC best buys

Josh-da-man

02-08-11, 01:45 PM

the money is made on the accessories

i've had people i know buy TV's without my help and a $1000 or $1200 TV turns into a $2000 or more purchase. the tv table, warranty, UPS, HDMI cable, etc is where all the money is made. and with best buy they also have the geek squad which is huge profit margins and potential sales of software and other products.

True.

Best Buy has always hard-sold shit you don't need. I remember buying a computer there back in '99 or 2000 (it was a Windows 98 system) and I had a manager who tried to force a UPS on me and would not take fucking NO for an answer. He gave me this big spiel about how I needed a UPS or the BIOS of my system would be corrupted, how the Compaq Presario I had selected was a faulty piece of junk and would break down without this $200 UPS. I even <s>told</s> lied to him that I already had a UPS, and he told me that I the one I had wasn't good enough, and that I needed this particular model. I thought he was going to follow me out to my car.

And don't even get me started on those fucking extended warranties. That's the biggest scam of them all... at least until they started "optimizing" laptops.

btbrossard

02-08-11, 02:04 PM

Funny: They did the same thing here in Milwaukee, WI. Opened last year in the CC building across the street from Best Buy. Great location in that it is right off the Interstate but a pain in the ass to get to.
I've wanted to stop into the Milwaukee store every time I drive past, but I've never drummed up the will to risk life and limb to get into the parking lot.

That location sucks to get in and out of.

btbrossard

02-08-11, 02:15 PM

And don't even get me started on those fucking extended warranties. That's the biggest scam of them all... at least until they started "optimizing" laptops.

Within the last two weeks, my wife and I went into the Brookfield Wisconsin Best Buy to purchase a Canon 7d (they were the closest best buy to have it in stock in SE Wisconsin.

We went to the photo area and asked to get one. The sales guy went to get one out of whatever case there stored in upfront. When he came back, he would not stop about the Best Buy Black Tie protection plan. I told him no, we didn't want to buy it, but thank you. He simply wouldn't give up, pressuring me the ENTIRE fucking time the sale was being rung up.

He said I was reckless for not buying the "insurance" and called me stupid, more than once. He said I was going to go home and destroy my new $2000 camera and then I would be sorry. Dust would get inside and destroy everything. He assured me our other Canon DSLR that had never had the sensor cleaned was chuck full of dirt and our photos were crap.

I understand they have to ask about the warranty, but if a customer says no, give it the fuck up.

Going out and spending money on junk I really don't need should be fun. Going to Best Buy sucks the life out of me and I dread going.

al_bundy

02-08-11, 04:02 PM

back in september i bought a PS3. BB tried to sell me the remote and the warranty. i said no. quick sale.

a while ago it was a hard sell, but not now. compare that to PC Richard and some other stores where they apply for credit for you without telling you that they are doing so

a lot of best buy's business is in cell phones these days and everyone buys the accessories even though it's the same rip off margins and the same people think it's an awesome deal

Blu-ray-collect

02-08-11, 04:15 PM

The warranty from Best Buy can be worth it. I bought the protection plans from Best Buy for my original LCD projector and a TV. It has paid off both times. My first LCD projector, I went through 5 bulbs in 2 years. The bulbs aren't cheap, and BB had to eat the cost every time. Then, that projector broke 6 months before the protection plan was to expire, and they had to junk it out. $1000 credit towards a new projector. Sales person helping me didn't know HDMI from DVI, so I got a Sony 1080P Projector as a replacement (an additional $200 more out of my pocket). Not a bad deal, in my opinion.

A TV I bought from BB also broke, and they had to junk that out (into its 3rd of 4 years under the warranty plan), too. It was a tube TV (not an HDTV), and I got a nice 42" flat screen LCD HDTV as a replacement. That only cost another $100.

I think my cases are very rare, and I've been lucky enough to have things go my way. It sure beats the new "buy back" plan that BB is pushing now.

fitprod

02-08-11, 04:59 PM

It's in the old circuit city building, isn't it? I never made it in there yet, I better hurry up, seems like the building is cursed.

No, just businesses owned by Mark Wattles.

If Wattles starts investing heavily in shares of Best Buy, they're done in 10 years...

fitprod

Quack

02-08-11, 05:45 PM

It's in the old circuit city building, isn't it? I never made it in there yet, I better hurry up, seems like the building is cursed.

Albany representing! :up:

Yea, I have only been in that place once......the Circuit City body wasn't even that cold before they moved in.... albeit short lived...

BrewCrew

02-09-11, 09:49 AM

I've wanted to stop into the Milwaukee store every time I drive past, but I've never drummed up the will to risk life and limb to get into the parking lot.

That location sucks to get in and out of.

I agree that location plays a factor but I never understood why right next to Circuit City/Ultimate Electronics is a Red Lobster, and it always seems busy.

Kmical

02-09-11, 11:02 AM

I agree that location plays a factor but I never understood why right next to Circuit City/Ultimate Electronics is a Red Lobster, and it always seems busy.

Have you ever had the Cheddar Biscuits at Red Lobster??? ;)

Blu-ray-collect

02-09-11, 12:26 PM

The liquidation sale does not begin until tomorrow (at least for the Thornton, CO location). May not be the case at all UE's, but an associate said it was supposed to start today, but was changed to tomorrow. There were a lot of people there, too (busier than I've seen it before).

Associate also said that tomorrow, everything goes to MSRP. He did not know what percentage discounts would begin, but it would probably vary on the item.

If you want something from UE, it is better to get it today because the prices will be a lot higher tomorrow.

Big Worms

02-09-11, 12:31 PM

They hired the same company that did the Compusa liquidation. From what I remember from that one the discount was not good at all.

I agree that location plays a factor but I never understood why right next to Circuit City/Ultimate Electronics is a Red Lobster, and it always seems busy.
I'd go out of my way for Red Lobster...

That Red Lobster is crazy packed 95% of the time.

Captsmee.00

02-10-11, 11:05 PM

They have been out of business here for years. Had no idea they still had stores other places.

They just opened 1 here about 8 weeks ago!

Abob Teff

02-11-11, 12:11 AM

No, just businesses owned by Mark Wattles.

If Wattles starts investing heavily in shares of Best Buy, they're done in 10 years...

fitprod

I was about to say something similar ... I didn't know if anybody would know what I was talking about.

For those of you don't know ... Wattles was the founder/CEO of Hollywood Video. He pretty well ran it into the ground (read: raided the cookie jar) before selling off most of his ownership and leaving for Ultimate Electronics.

Edison

02-13-11, 04:01 PM

Stopped by the local store today. Signs saying 10-30% off everything seen a lot of 10/15/20% off stuff, but didn't see anything 30% off. Looked at some of the blu-ray's but even at 20% off of MSRP there wasn't anything I wanted.

h21z

02-13-11, 05:25 PM

the one in tucson is closing too, does anyone know how much a PS3 is going for??

JAYARE

02-13-11, 08:45 PM

Stopped by the local store today. Signs saying 10-30% off everything seen a lot of 10/15/20% off stuff, but didn't see anything 30% off. Looked at some of the blu-ray's but even at 20% off of MSRP there wasn't anything I wanted.

30% off was probably candy

Blu-ray-collect

02-14-11, 12:57 AM

30% off items were camera accessories, batteries, and some Monster products.

alanstar@erols.com

02-18-11, 07:57 PM

Went by the Danvers MA store today to take a look. Here are the current discounts:

There was still a LOT of stock left in all departments; I remember Circuit City was very picked over even in the first few days of liquidation. Either people have gotten smarter about waiting for bigger discounts, or there's less demand now than there was two years ago.

JiM T

03-11-11, 01:54 AM

Anyone know the current discount status at UE? I'm interested in buying a new receiver. Thanks...

Blu-ray-collect

03-11-11, 06:41 PM

http://www.ultimateelectronics.com/

I was there the other day (in Thornton, CO). Receivers were only at 20%. Blu-rays were 25%. Foot traffic into the store is way down because people are learning that the prices are high and discounts are terrible. The 60% off stuff, that I could find, were the car audio kits. There is going to be a warehouse sale at the Colorado location tomorrow. I may check it out.

Mao

03-11-11, 09:02 PM

http://www.ultimateelectronics.com/

I was there the other day (in Thornton, CO). Receivers were only at 20%. Blu-rays were 25%. Foot traffic into the store is way down because people are learning that the prices are high and discounts are terrible. The 60% off stuff, that I could find, were the car audio kits. There is going to be a warehouse sale at the Colorado location tomorrow. I may check it out.

Warehouse at the Thornton location?

Did you think there were any good Blu Rau deals at 25% off?

MrSmearkase

03-11-11, 09:52 PM

The BRs and DVDs have been shipped out of the MA stores, so they may be headed to that warehouse sale that was mentioned :shrug:

Blu-ray-collect

03-12-11, 02:49 PM

No, I don't think there are any deals to be had for 25% off blu-rays. Amazon.com prices are still cheaper.

Yep, the warehouse in Thornton. I haven't been there yet. Probably too late to get any "deals", if there were any.

alanstar@erols.com

03-12-11, 06:18 PM

Salem NH store had BDs at 30% off. That put most Criterion titles at $21 (stickered at $27.95), so that's not too bad. Limited selection though, of course.

Edison

03-17-11, 07:24 PM

The local store is down to 40% off blu-rays and just got a bunch more in, the associate said they were emptying the warehouse shipping the remaining stuff out to the stores.

Blu-ray-collect

03-18-11, 12:40 AM

I think other stores are shipping stuff back to the warehouse in Thornton, CO. I dropped by tonight, and they had blu-rays in plastic cases (the dreaded ones like Walmart uses). Employees were removing the blu's from the cases and putting them on the shelves.

alanstar@erols.com

03-21-11, 08:18 AM

Salem NH store is up to 40% off Blu-Rays. Picked up 'Crumb' (Criterion) for $16.80; there were only a couple other Criterion titles, but they didn't interest me.

TVs were at 30%, appliances 40%, billiards 50%.

Blu-ray-collect

03-25-11, 02:33 PM

If anyone is interested, blu-rays are now 50% off. The Thornton, CO store has a huge selection of blu-rays on the shelves (presumably from other locations sending their stock here). I picked up "Cliffhanger" for $5. Some blu-ray prices are now below Amazon.com.

mattysemo247

03-27-11, 07:09 PM

Blu Rays were 70% off at our local store. I picked up the new Robin Hood for a little over $8. They also had all three of the Pirates movies, Iron Man, Book of Eli, the Twlight movies, a TON of the Cloudy Meatball 3D movies, plus some others.

mike07

03-27-11, 10:09 PM

Anyone know what the discount for the DVDs+Blu-ray for the Albany,NY store?

alanstar@erols.com

03-28-11, 06:33 PM

Salem NH has BDs at 50% off. Picked up another 'Crumb (Criterion)' for $14.00, and 'American Werewolf in London' for $7.50. There were still hundreds of titles on the shelves, I was surprised...

BamaDan

03-30-11, 07:56 PM

COS store just went to 60% off BD's and 50% off DVDs. In town on business and have been hammering that store pretty hard. Picked up Modern Times (Criterion) for $11 today. I picked up lots of the Roger Corman Shout Factory movies on BD. All in all, there's still some good stuff in there, but it'll look like a swap meet after this weekend.

Sign said Last 10 Days.

Dexter Douglas

03-31-11, 12:29 AM

If you mean Colorado Springs, you're welcome :) I almost picked it up yesterday but had to get back to work and had already been waiting in line to check out for 15 minutes without moving up at all. The sad part is that there were only 2 people in line ahead of me. I had to take off. I'm glad a fellow DVD Talker got it, though.

Blu-ray-collect

03-31-11, 11:41 PM

Returned from UE in Thornton, CO. Sign indicates 10 days left for this store (not sure if that is all stores). Blu-rays are now 60% off. If you buy more than 6, it is 80% off. This location seems to get stock in from other locations that may have closed. Bought 7 blu's at an average cost of $5 each.

Mao

03-31-11, 11:50 PM

Returned from UE in Thornton, CO. Sign indicates 10 days left for this store (not sure if that is all stores). Blu-rays are now 60% off. If you buy more than 6, it is 80% off. This location seems to get stock in from other locations that may have closed. Bought 7 blu's at an average cost of $5 each.

Lord, I probably saw you there, we were there at the same time...great deals tonight....even found a sealed promotional copy of the 3D "Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs" that the girl at the register gave me for a buck!!!

Walked out with 16 BDs for an average price of $3.37! Thankfully, none of the ones I picked up last week were there tonight....you weren't the dude on the leather chair using his calculator, were ya?

Blu-ray-collect

04-01-11, 01:01 AM

Heh, no, but I know who you are talking about. :) I walked by him, too. Killer deals; I will probably head back there tomorrow morning since I stopped looking because they were closing soon. And, hopefully they get another shipment in.

As of 1 April 2011, the Thornton location changed the discount. Last night, they were giving a straight 80% discount if you bought 6 or more blu-rays. It is now 60% off, and then another 20% off of that (as it should have been). Got lucky last night.

Dexter Douglas

04-01-11, 03:21 PM

I ended up hitting the Colorado Springs store, where they're running the 60% + 20% as well and have the final 10 days signs up as well. I didn't do too bad, either.

My wife's gonna kill me until I tell her I just did her Christmas shopping for her WAY in advance. Twilight Zone for $20 a season was just too good to pass up.

BamaDan

04-02-11, 12:06 PM

Yep, that's the one. Not much left save a few copies of Apocalypse Now Full Disclosure blu and 2 or 3 Criterion. Those are probably gone now too. It'll be Tue before I get back to COS, so I expect a big crater in the BD section.

Blu-ray-collect

04-02-11, 03:40 PM

The UE at Flat Iron Crossing in Broomfield had a small assortment of blu-rays left, and they have begun to haul stuff out of this location (presumably taking it to Thornton).

The Thornton HQ location had more blu-rays, but no new stock in the last few days.

Not many TV's left, a few refrigerators, front-end washer/dryer sets and printers. They had 3 or 4 different models of laptops on display, but not sure what they have in stock.

9 days left.

Mao

04-02-11, 05:13 PM

Hit Thornton again one last time...

Looks like they discounted things wrong on Thursday night...that's when they did 80% off sticker price....today, they did 60% for 6 or more, then did 80% discount on that price....okay, still, but not nearly as awesome a deal...glad i picked up more that night.

10 titles today for an average of $7 a piece....

Blu-ray-collect

04-02-11, 09:33 PM

I think you meant 60% and then 20%. If they did 60%, and then 80%, you got a really good deal. ;)

Mao

04-02-11, 09:52 PM

Thursday night I literally got 80% off each title...today was essentially 68%.

Not bad, but Thursday's haul was better! :D

Dexter Douglas

04-03-11, 12:23 AM

Dang...the COS store had half of the stock they had yesterday when I went in this morning. I still found a few things I wanted, but I'm pretty sure this was my last trip in.

ETA: BamaDan, I did see probably 8 or 9 Criterion blurays including Mystery Train, Anitchrist and Breathless. Good hunting!

BamaDan

04-03-11, 04:30 PM

Yeah, I figure a lot of that is going to stay for a while. Wasn't that interested in many of the remaining titles, but my price point may be swayed by Tuesday.

Manzana

04-07-11, 10:29 AM

I'm surprised there's so little discussion of UE's final days. There are some decent BD deals to be had there. They were 70% off on Tuesday and 80% off on Wednesday. As before, mine refuses to answer their phones no matter when I call but fortunately it's on my daily driving path. I didn't even see a phone so I think they totally removed them, but would it really hurt them to tell you the current discount on BDs if you called? They weren't that busy when I went.

Today is their last day and I asked if they'd go to 90% off. The guy said (as usual) he didn't know but they need to get rid of everything, so I'm assuming the remaining 100 or so BDs will probably be $1-$2 each at the end. The only problem is I'll probably be at work at that time, so I bought the remaining handful that I wanted at 80% (but not 70%) and figure that'll probably be it. Work may provide the money to buy things, but it also prevents me from going to stores when I want to so I can buy what I want at good prices and prevents me from having time to use what I buy.

Has anyone been at a UE on their last day/hours to see what percentage the final BDs were sold at? They had about 5 copies of Monster House 3D and Cyrus, so those will probably still be there at 90% off.

Blu-ray-collect

04-07-11, 01:52 PM

UE in Thornton is still running 60% off blu-rays. Sign outside says 6 days remaining. I got an email from UE this morning stating all stores will be closed by April 12th, if they aren't closed already.

Slim picken's at Thornton location. 60% off networking, so I grabbed a set of the 200mbps powerline network adapters for $60.

Manzana

04-08-11, 10:18 AM

My UE store is history now. I knew they were closing yesterday (and they said it would probably be early), but I had to go to work before UE opened at 10 AM, and when I was "released" from work and drove by UE around 7:30 PM it was all dark and all of the signs gone except the closed one.

I guess I'll never know what the percentages off were on BDs on their final day and hours or if there were even any BDs left I would've wanted. Looks like my store closed a little earlier than most people's.

Mao

04-08-11, 10:22 AM

Still stuck at 60% off Blus at Thornton....but on my way out, i was handed a flyer for "Denver's Largest Garage Sale"....apparently, they are going to have a huge warehouse sale of all the inventory that was not sold at stores around the country...should be interesting, but I don't expect much.

Blu-ray-collect

04-08-11, 10:44 AM

When is the GS? I didn't get one of those yesterday.

Edison

04-08-11, 03:15 PM

The local store here was 70% off Blu-rays yesterday, with the window signs saying 4 days left so I'm guessing Sunday will be it. There were still quite a few BDs left as they got a shipment a couple weeks ago, but not much else 6-8 display TV sets, printers, speakers, and a few appliances. I'll check again Saturday evening to see it they dropped anymore.

Mao

04-08-11, 10:03 PM

When is the GS? I didn't get one of those yesterday.

April 22, 23, and 24th - 8AM - 5PM...we should meet up. But I don't know when I'm going...

Blu-ray-collect

04-11-11, 03:00 PM

Thanks for the info. I won't be able to go, anyway. Hopefully, they won't have much. :D

Dexter Douglas

04-11-11, 03:33 PM

The Co Springs store's last day is tomorrow, but I went to today and everything was 80% off. 80% off crap is still crap, though. Picked over doesn't remotely qualify the stock they have left. I was able to snag a copy of His Name Was Jason and Krush Groove for $5, but I didn't see else I'd really want even at 90% off.

Jimmy Cragen

04-15-11, 04:40 PM

April 22, 23, and 24th - 8AM - 5PM...we should meet up. But I don't know when I'm going...

Where is the garage sale?

Blu-ray-collect

04-22-11, 06:54 PM

Anyone get a chance to go to this "garage sale"?

Mao

04-23-11, 07:00 PM

Waste of time for me...no software to be found.

Blu-ray-collect

05-05-11, 09:36 AM

On a whim, I went to "ultimateelectronics.com". There is a message about UE being "re-launched", and visitors can provide their email address for notification when it happens.

I bet "tigerdirect.com" has something to do with this. :) Much like the "re-launch" of Circuit City.